Elder Gunner Gallas saves his misfiring colleagues
Arsenal take control of tie but Wenger’s lack of strength in depth is laid bare
Arsenal took a huge step towards the promised land of the Champions League group stage with a laboured victory in Holland last night.
Captain William Gallas showed his callow team the way by bundling home the opening goal, before striker Emmanuel Adebayor tapped in a second late on.
But there was much to concern Gunners manager Arsene Wenger as his injury-hit side failed to take charge of their first competitive match of the new season.
The desperately inexperienced central midfield pairing of 17-year-old debutant Aaron Ramsey and Denilson, 20, never exerted any dominance on the Champions League qualifying round first leg. And that allowed Twente – now managed by Steve McClaren – to stroke the ball around with a confidence that few will recall his England team showing.
The Dutchmen ought to have taken a first-half lead, with Romano Denneboom and Marko Arnautovic both spurning good openings.
But they paid the price for those misses in the second half and Wenger insisted his side’s superior class was always likely to overcome the energy sapping tactics of their opponents.
“We were a very young team and we did not lose our nerve, did not panic,” said Wenger.
“They imposed a very physical game on us, with man marking all over the pitch. They did that with a lot of belief and spirit. In the end maybe our technical superiority allowed us to score two goals. That is a massive advantage for the second leg, but we will be on our toes.”
The match, and the tie, swung Arsenal’s way in the 63rd minute, when a Robin van Persie right-wing free-kick eluded everyone but onrushing centre back Gallas, who gracelessly bundled the ball home from close range. The Frenchman’s captaincy has come under fire, but he contributed goals in vital games last season, and last night’s effort went some way to vindicating the decision to retain him as skipper. Arnautovic missed a chance to level when he shot wide of the near post, and Twente were punished in the 82nd minute. A long ball found Theo Walcott unattended, and his square pass left Adebayor a simple tap-in.